FDA: Inside Health Policy

Lawmakers Urge FDA To Keep Plant-Based Product Labeling Dairy-Free

For this article, I reached out to a wide range of stakeholders--including lawmakers and industry groups--on deadline to hear their take on the latest development in FDA’s ongoing process to decide whether it should allow plant-based products to be labeled with dairy terms such as “milk,” “meat,” and “cheese.”

AdvaMed Pitches Leg Proposal To Let FDA Accept User Fees In Shutdown

In the midst of a 35-day partial government shutdown, the medical device industry lobby pitched a legislative proposal that would let FDA continue to review new device applications despite a lapse in funding. For this story, I used my contacts in industry, advocacy and Congress to get conflicting takes on the proposal within a few hours for deadline.

Women's Health Experts Skeptical Of FDA-Approved Contraception App
For this article I interviewed multiple patient advocates who questioned the FDA’s decision to approve a mobile medical app that keeps track of women’s menstrual cycles as a method of contraception. The method--often called the rhythm method--has a high failure rate, and experts wondered if the approval was related to President Donald Trump’s proposal to withdraw federal funds from clinics that provide abortion services.

FDA, DOD Sign Agreement To Approve Medical Products For Military

This article explains the politics behind an agreement where FDA will rapidly review products the Department of Defense views as vital for the military. A patient advocate questioned the agreement, particularly in regards to FDA’s approval of Dsuvia, an opioid said to be five to 10 times more powerful than fentanyl, which was on DOD’s list of products to be reviewed.